CASA Project: Aging in Bergamo. How neighborhoods and urban spaces can shape opportunities for healthy longevity in mid-sized cities

In contemporary society, the dual challenges of an aging population and endless urbanization emphasize the urgent need to reconsider how housing and urban environments influence the physical and psychological well-being of older adults, ultimately shaping their aging trajectories. Aging in Place, which involves supporting older adults to live independently in their homes and communities while maintaining social ties and meaningful relationships within supportive environments, emerges as a crucial strategy to address this issue. However, this concept also reveals a more complex reality: the multidimensional nature of vulnerability, within society’s multilevel framework, comprising cultural, economic, social, and urban factors that can hinder or promote healthy longevity. The “CASA” project, which is part of Spoke 1 of the Age-It initiative, takes a multidisciplinary approach to exploring these dynamics in the city of Bergamo. The project collects data from various sources using different strategies to retrieve psychological, demographic, geographical and spatial variables describing the population of older adults, their territory and the services available to them. All the collected data will be used to define an innovative vulnerability index at the neighbourhood level using a statistical approach. This statistical strategy could then be replicated in other medium sized cities. The findings highlight the need for urban planning and public policies that listen to and acknowledges the needs of older residents, in order to design inclusive, age friendly cities that actively support healthy longevity.